Ask Anything

Hey Brad,

By now I’m sure you know we aren’t in control of what desires we receive. Certainly we can put ourselves in an environment and depending on the strength of our ties their and how much we allow it to influence us, accordingly you could say we can “control” the desires, but again, we have nothing within us that can “choose” a desire. There’s room to unpack this more if you want but I think you understand.

I catch your direction though…you’re asking if the Creator gives you some desire, you want to reject it or accept some other desire instead. The correct approach would be to first acknowledge this is coming from the Creator. Secondly, see what it is you’re supposed to do with that desire and if that means you discover it’s something that is deviating you from the path or an opportunity to strengthen your ties to the environment etc..

The important thing here is to be sensitive to what the Creator gives us each moment, to react accordingly and not just let moments come and go, desires come and go, where we just flow with whatever. Our action needs to be intentional and conscious.

Chris

Spotted a “typo” let me say again, “Can i counter desires BY creating opposite desires” ?

It’s not a stupid question at all. The Zohar uses all types of symbolism. If you think that’s “stupid” then clearly you’ve never read the Zohar or the Torah. Good luck to you on your journey.

Hey Luke,

It symbolizes the removal of egoistic desires and the purification of one’s intentions to align with the Creator. If you’re asking about the physical act, this of course is just a physical act and the importance and emphasis is certainly on the spiritual action.

Thanks!

All kinds…things like shamanism, mysticism, astrology etc. I’m not sure there was something so distinct as Kabbalah before then. Of course we’re talking about the initial revelation by Adam around 6k years ago. Before that it’s hard to say.

Since Kabbalah was born before Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

In Kabbalah, angels are considered as forces or messengers that operate within the spiritual worlds. They are not beings with free will but rather specific forces that carry out the will of the Creator. These forces exist at various levels within the different worlds of the spiritual system.

Thanks!

Hi Greg,

It’s a symbolic representation of a corporeal body and a spiritual one. It represents an integral and necessary part of the body that the body only feels whole if it’s functioning and working in sync with the rest of the body. If it’s disconnected the body feels this discomfort. There’s also the aspect of joy that he mentions there when the body reunites with the organ and can then feel life as it was meant to be, connected to the entire system.

Thanks!

Hey Sheila,

Yes the classic predicament. Look, when speaking with people, the approach should always be less is more when talking about Kabbalah. There are different ways of having a conversation without mentioning the wisdom where you can talk about the principles as principles stemming from nature, human nature, integral systems etc., that’s if you just want to “plant that seed” like you mentioned. When we speak, there’s a kind of confidence which is undeniable and this itself may be enough to get them to raise an ear to hear more. If that’s the case, the best option is always a kind of beginner book from the Kabbalah bookstore or some interesting YouTube clip you found that you can pass on–but here as well, less is more. Meaning, don’t go for a discussion about Kabbalah, especially as a beginner. Pass on the link, or the book and let them find the answers instead of you becoming a kind of reference for them. This is the safest bet but I’m of the belief that we all have to have a lot of these “failures” in our interactions before we really learn and feel that what I said above is true. Typically it’s a parents or close friends who notice first so they’re often the first one to get an explanation about what Kabbalah is and it usually doesn’t go well.

The best is to be an example of someone who found something that “works” for them, makes them happier, brings them peace, gives them direction in life. They’ll notice and this is the best advertisement.

Best of luck,

Chris